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Exercise 9 Approaching Junctions

This is an exercise which can be given in either phase 1 or phase 2. We are now going to deal with it as a phase 1 exercise. The general advise given for exercise 7 equally applies to this exercise.

The examiner will introduce the exercise saying something on the following lines, "I would like you to imagine I have been having driving lessons in a car like this so I am conversant with the controls. Last week my instructor told me he would teach me today how to approach road junctions, that is turning left and right from minor roads into major roads. Will you teach me the exercise as if I have never had it explained to me before and if I have any faults in my driving will you correct them?"

As in every lesson when we are teaching a pupil for the first time, we introduce ourselves and get on first name terms. Next ascertain the pupil's previous knowledge in order to pitch our instruction at the correct level. You will probably find the pupil has previously done a good deal of straight forward driving without having negotiated many junctions. He may have heard about the MSM procedure.

Your objective will be to briefly outline a procedure which the pupil can use to negotiate and emerge safely from a variety of junctions. Teaching the pupil how to assess whether or not it is safe to emerge or stop and wait. You will develop the pupil's judgement when he begins to gain practical experience, do not try to cram too much detail in your briefing. You will need training aids.

Begin by drawing the pupil's attention to the visual aid and explain that you intend to show him how to approach and emerge safely from minor roads into major roads. Begin with the left turn and say to him. I would like you to imagine we are driving along this road and it is our intention to turn left at the 'T' junction. Starting some distance from the junction say the first thing we do is to assess the junction. Look for traffic lights, stop signs, give way signs etc. Many junctions will not have any of these, some will only have give way lines and some will have nothing. Nevertheless you realize it will be necessary to make sure it is safe before we enter the main road and that will involve slowing down so that we can stop if necessary. We next look in all three mirrors and if safe to signal, we give a turning left signal. Now we position the car which means placing the car about two to three feet from the nearside kerb. Once in position we must maintain it all the way to and around the junction. There can be no swinging out before or after the turn. Next comes speed and look, we marry these together and this leads me onto another mnemonic code: VGS. This stands for visibility governs speed and speed governs the gear to be used. I will explain. First imagine the land at the both sides of the road to be open country or playing fields. We would be able to see a mile in either direction so we would know now whether or not it was safe to emerge, so we would only need to adjust the speed to be able to negotiate the corner. Perhaps we could go round in second or third gear depending on the severity of the turn couldn't we? Once you have the pupil's agreement, Tell him this type of junction is an open junction.

Closed Junctions

Next deal with Closed Junctions. Use a visual aid which illustrates Zones of Visibility and Zones of invisibility. Explain if there were buildings on either side we would be unable to see properly until we reached the end of the road and were able to see along the footpath, and, even then our view may be hindered by parked vehicles.We would have to use first gear and slip the clutch so that he can edge out carefully. (Peep and Creep). That is quite different from the first example which has been brought about by the degree of visibility. It is important the pupil understands and accepts that visibility affects speed.

We now say this is how we overcome this problem. What we do is, we apply the footbrake so that if we do not release it the car will stop just before it crosses the give way line. At the same time we begin to look right left right as often as is necessary to find out if it is safe to emerge. If the view opens up and we can see it is safe we release the brake, select the appropriate gear and drive away. On the other hand if the view does not open up we keep our foot on the brake. The speed will become slower and slower as the car approaches the line and eventually we shall have to depress the clutch pedal to prevent the engine from stalling. When we depress the clutch change into the appropriate gear which will be first gear if we are on the level or facing uphill. If facing downhill, and we are turning downhill, if the car would start from a standing start in second gear, then second gear would be the correct gear to use. Eventually the view will open up and if it is unsafe you will have nothing to do, the car will stop in a safe position behind the line. Alternatively if when the view opens up and you can see it is safe to emerge, release the footbrake. The car will not stop, it will roll over the line and you can take up the drive with the clutch and accelerator. If you are facing uphill, at the point when you change into first gear, the effects of the gradient will probably be enough to check the forward movement of the car, so you can put your right foot on the accelerator and set the gas. Bring the clutch to just below the biting point and as the car comes to rest on the line bring the clutch to the biting point. If the road is safe, drive away. If not you can hold the car for a second or two on the clutch but for longer periods apply the handbrake and depress the clutch fully until you can see your opportunity to emerge. Now invite questions.

Right Turns

Next explain the right turn by saying the procedure is almost the same. As before look for traffic lights etc. check the mirrors, when safe signal right, then take up a position just left of the centre line. Once in this position it is important that you maintain it because vehicles could begin to pass you on your nearside. Do not cross or straddle the centre line as you could endanger yourself and oncoming drivers. Then adjust your speed again as if it was your intention to stop at the line and begin making your observations to the right and left in that order. Look right left right as often as is necessary to ensure that it is safe to emerge without causing drivers on the main road to reduce speed or swerve. As your vehicle begins to cross the line start turning so the car enters the left hand side of the new road on a natural line. Any questions?

Then one final item, as you approach these junctions if pedestrians are crossing the road. Remember they are main road traffic and have as much right to cross the mouth of the road as a double deck bus. So do not use your weight and make them walk round the back of your vehicle, slow down and allow them to cross, then approach the junction. Again invite and deal with questions.

You can now instruct your pupil to move off and it is now your duty to guide the pupil through the ensuing junctions. Start in good time with your talk-throughs. As before do your best to prevent mistakes. In the early stages you will need to give guidance when it is safe to emerge and when it is unsafe. You must cultivate good judgement for your pupils.If you have to keep repeating yourself then ask the pupil to pull up and discuss the difficulty. Give your pupil remedial action and again guide him through until he can do it properly. Give feedback and encouragement as necessary. Do not accept anything less than perfection.

A common fault which I find in learner drivers and some experienced drivers is they will emerge turning left looking right only. The car has emerged before they look to the left When turning to the right some have a tendency to look left first. You must watch closely for these faults, both are potentially dangerous. Instructors often miss them because they are too busy looking to the right and left themselves instead of watching the pupil. Sometimes the root cause of these faults is the fact that the pupil cannot differentiate between slipping the clutch and clutch coasting, therefore I will explain the difference. Coasting is when the driver disconnects the drive when the engine could exert some degree of braking effect.Once the engine has slowed down to tick over speed then the engine can no longer reduce the speed of the road wheels, in fact the opposite will take place. The wheels with the brakes applied will stall the engine. This cannot be allowed to happen so the clutch must be used. If we have reached the point where we want the engine to propel the vehicle then we must have the correct gear engaged and the correct gear, is the gear which is capable of moving the vehicle from a standing start having regard for the load and gradient. Remember the purpose and function of the clutch. It is to give the driver a means, independently of the accelerator, of varying the power being transmitted to the wheels. It also enables the driver to make a smooth connection of the drive when moving off and changing gears.

To assist your pupil to judge when it is safe or unsafe to emerge. Explain the difference between joining the flow and crossing the flow. When joining the flow you must be able to join the new road, straighten up and accelerate to the speed of the approaching vehicles without causing the drivers to reduce speed. In order to achieve this the pupil has to compare the time it is going to take him from deciding to emerge to actually reaching the speed at which vehicles are approaching. Give an example of joining a road where the traffic is flowing at 30mph. The vehicles will be covering the ground at a rate of approximately 15 yards or 15 metres per second. If it takes the pupil 10 seconds to start off, turn the corner and accelerate to 30mph then for it to be safe the nearest driver must be at least 150 yards away. If the pupil is crossing the path of the traffic then he will probably do that in half the time so half the distance may well be safe. You can ask the pupil to point out an object about 150 yards away to get an idea of his judgement of distance.

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